Frequently Asked Questions

How does the site capture these emails?

The Archive periodically checks email accounts which have been signed up for publicly available mailings lists. Identifying information about the accounts used is removed from messages when they are displayed on the site.

Why don't links in the emails work?

Links have been removed from the emails for two reasons:

The archived emails aren't meant to be perfect substitutes for the originals. In some cases organizations will email private links to white papers or other resources to reward users for signing up. We don't intend to remove incentives for signing up for the original lists.

There's no perfectly reliable way to remove unsubscribe links from the emails without removing all links.

What's the purpose of the screenshots?

The screenshots give an idea of what the emails looked like shortly after they were sent. Images in emails are typically hosted externally, and not attachments stored in the email itself. Email provider often delete these images only a few days after the email is sent, making it impossible to get a sense of how the email originally looked.

How did you choose which lists to add?

First, we used tools like Ballotpedia to find websites for political candidates and office-holders. Then we moved on to PACs and other groups that perform explicit political advocacy. Finally, we searched for non-profits, NGOs, and other advocacy groups.

If you feel that we've includes emails that do not belong, or know of an email list that we're missing, please email [email protected].

The Archive of Political Emails is a project of Defending Democracy Together Institute. Please email [email protected] with any questions.